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Meseta 2019

Time of past OR future Camino
First one in 1977 by train. Many since then by foot. Next one ASAP.
It's getting chilly here in rural Virginia, and the brown and golden leaves are starting to fall from the trees.... which means that it's time to plan my next trip to Spain!

At this point I'm contemplating a simple solitary walk across the Meseta -- Burgos to Leon or Astorga -- in either May or (more likely) September/October. And a quite leisurely walk, too, living in the moment.... (Have to start treating my old bones gently!)

Anyone know how I can find a 2019 schedule of Meseta festivals or market days? Anyone got any cheap Meseta hostels or hotels, any memorable restaurants, that they can recommend? Any other useful Meseta suggestions?

Pax
 
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Technical backpack for day trips with backpack cover and internal compartment for the hydration bladder. Ideal daypack for excursions where we need a medium capacity backpack. The back with Air Flow System creates large air channels that will keep our back as cool as possible.

€83,-
Transport luggage-passengers.
From airports to SJPP
Luggage from SJPP to Roncevalles
In 2015 – end of Oct, beginning of Nov – I got caught up in the transhumance. We watched amazed as the sheep came through El Burgo Ranero in the dark in the evening, hundreds of them, and we walked parallel with them the next day. I will never forget it.
Jill
 
Mid-June Sahagun has a long celebration of its local saint which will include a few runnings of the bulls. I've previously searched for exact dates but I've never had luck. Peg and I were there on a Friday of a big weekend festival (with events before and after that scheduled too.) It was one of my favorite canimo sights.
 
New Original Camino Gear Designed Especially with The Modern Peregrino In Mind!
It's getting chilly here in rural Virginia, and the brown and golden leaves are starting to fall from the trees.... which means that it's time to plan my next trip to Spain!

At this point I'm contemplating a simple solitary walk across the Meseta -- Burgos to Leon or Astorga -- in either May or (more likely) September/October. And a quite leisurely walk, too, living in the moment.... (Have to start treating my old bones gently!)

Anyone know how I can find a 2019 schedule of Meseta festivals or market days? Anyone got any cheap Meseta hostels or hotels, any memorable restaurants, that they can recommend? Any other useful Meseta suggestions?

Pax
Hi rappahannock you and I appear to work for the same company and our minds are not too far apart, though it is said that fools seldom differ. The other half and I were talking about our holiday next year in Sorrento and by the time we had finished our conversation
we had decided to walk from Astorga to Santiago instead and the year after St Jean- Santiago for the third time. As I said "Fools seldom differ" Perhaps we could hand over a torch or baton in Astorga.
 
I've walked from Burgos to Astorga in both May and September and I prefer May. The heat is less of a problem in May.
 
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I've walked from Burgos to Astorga in both May and September and I prefer May. The heat is less of a problem in May.

Meseta in May is wonderful: cool, green, flowers everywhere. Crowding quite reasonable.
 
Hi rappahannock you and I appear to work for the same company and our minds are not too far apart, though it is said that fools seldom differ. The other half and I were talking about our holiday next year in Sorrento and by the time we had finished our conversation
we had decided to walk from Astorga to Santiago instead and the year after St Jean- Santiago for the third time. As I said "Fools seldom differ" Perhaps we could hand over a torch or baton in Astorga.

I would be honored to make your acquaintance!

Pax.
 
A selection of Camino Jewellery
It's getting chilly here in rural Virginia, and the brown and golden leaves are starting to fall from the trees.... which means that it's time to plan my next trip to Spain!

At this point I'm contemplating a simple solitary walk across the Meseta -- Burgos to Leon or Astorga -- in either May or (more likely) September/October. And a quite leisurely walk, too, living in the moment.... (Have to start treating my old bones gently!)

Anyone know how I can find a 2019 schedule of Meseta festivals or market days? Anyone got any cheap Meseta hostels or hotels, any memorable restaurants, that they can recommend? Any other useful Meseta suggestions?

Pax
Nothing to do with your post I am afraid. Your profile picture looks familiar. Are you the priest I met in Espinal back in April. If it was you, did you return after I left you in Pamplona to make your way home
 
Nothing to do with your post I am afraid. Your profile picture looks familiar. Are you the priest I met in Espinal back in April. If it was you, did you return after I left you in Pamplona to make your way home
OOOPs, should have read more closely. You are from Virginia, my priest was from England. But the similarity is amazing ;)
 
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
In Ledigos, 10 Euros, delicious.

Yep, I agree. When I was there in April, I had the garbanzos, but with fresh grilled trout as the main course, and strawberries in chocolate sauce for dessert. And, of course, vino Tinto. 😉 Plus, it's a lovely albergue, with a very helpful and friendly staff.
 
In Burgos I can recommend Hotel Norte y Londres, just down the street from the Cathedral. It's two-star rated - and priced - but really, it's worth three stars. I've stayed there twice now and loved it each time I stayed. If you contact the hotel direct and let them know you are a pilgrim you will receive a pilgrim's discount. The rooms are all spacious and joy of joys - all the rooms have baths as well as a shower - soak away the jet lag! Make sure you take the deal which includes breakfast - it's a delicious and plentiful buffet in a lovely breakfast room.

For a fantastic restaurant in Burgos I can recommend Casa Pancho, Calle San Lorenzo, 13-15, about five minutes walk from the hotel. I had a completely wonderful meal there last year - I chose the local black pudding and also scrumptious lamb cutlets - so good!

Buen Camino and cheers from Oz -

Jenny
 
Down bag (90/10 duvet) of 700 fills with 180 g (6.34 ounces) of filling. Mummy-shaped structure, ideal when you are looking for lightness with great heating performance.

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Yip we all look the same there is a factory turning us out to a standard boring design
Haha, my other priestly friend from San Diego must have had the mould broken when he was made, looks nothing like you :). Sorry about misreading your post. I thought I had found the priest who helped me after I fell in a river. Just talking to him was a big help. He had hurt his foot and reckoned it was cheaper to fly home, (he lives close to the airport), rest for a week and then return but I never found out if he returned or not and did not have any contact details for him
 
Haha, my other priestly friend from San Diego must have had the mould broken when he was made, looks nothing like you :). Sorry about misreading your post. I thought I had found the priest who helped me after I fell in a river. Just talking to him was a big help. He had hurt his foot and reckoned it was cheaper to fly home, (he lives close to the airport), rest for a week and then return but I never found out if he returned or not and did not have any contact details for him
Just watch what you say, because, if what your membership says about where you live!!!!!! is correct I could come round to your house tonight
 
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
These recommendations based on assumption you are a pilgrim with a holy purpose and dedication to simplicity, as well as great hospitality:
Albergue San Francisco Asis in Tosantos. Old and basic, but a Camino classic. Saintly hospitaleros.
Albergue Monasterio San Anton, 3 km before Castrojeriz, a bare-bones albergue tucked into the ruins of a hospital-monastery. No electricity or hot water, but juju galore!
Albergue San Nicolas, similarly bare-bones, in Puente de Vilarente, a short day's walk from San Anton. Italian confraternity has a before-dinner foot-washing rite that many find quite moving.
La Finca, a restaurant/albergue a km or two outside Fromista, has excellent menu del dia lunches, and delicious hot sandwiches.
Peaceable Kingdom is my house in Moratinos. Lots of animals, a couple of them are people! Restaurant El Castillo de Moratinos has excellent local cuisine; Casa Barrunta in San Nicolas del Real Camino has some of the best paella anywhere.
 
These recommendations based on assumption you are a pilgrim with a holy purpose and dedication to simplicity, as well as great hospitality:
Albergue San Francisco Asis in Tosantos. Old and basic, but a Camino classic. Saintly hospitaleros.
Albergue Monasterio San Anton, 3 km before Castrojeriz, a bare-bones albergue tucked into the ruins of a hospital-monastery. No electricity or hot water, but juju galore!
Albergue San Nicolas, similarly bare-bones, in Puente de Vilarente, a short day's walk from San Anton. Italian confraternity has a before-dinner foot-washing rite that many find quite moving.
La Finca, a restaurant/albergue a km or two outside Fromista, has excellent menu del dia lunches, and delicious hot sandwiches.
Peaceable Kingdom is my house in Moratinos. Lots of animals, a couple of them are people! Restaurant El Castillo de Moratinos has excellent local cuisine; Casa Barrunta in San Nicolas del Real Camino has some of the best paella anywhere.

"Holy purpose"? "Simplicity?" Absolutely. Those are the pillars of the whole Camino stucture.... I have not yet slipped over the line separating the peregrino from the tourist....

I visited San Anton -- remarkable place! -- while a friend was working there as a hospitalera, but I did not stay, which was a mistake. Next time I'll stay for sure.... Ditto San Nicholas. Having someone wash my feet? That will be an experience for me -- usually it's the other way round.... It's precisely the prospect of revisiting such places that inclines me to walk the Meseta one last time.

Happy All Saints Day!
 
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It's getting chilly here in rural Virginia, and the brown and golden leaves are starting to fall from the trees.... which means that it's time to plan my next trip to Spain!

At this point I'm contemplating a simple solitary walk across the Meseta -- Burgos to Leon or Astorga -- in either May or (more likely) September/October. And a quite leisurely walk, too, living in the moment.... (Have to start treating my old bones gently!)

Anyone know how I can find a 2019 schedule of Meseta festivals or market days? Anyone got any cheap Meseta hostels or hotels, any memorable restaurants, that they can recommend? Any other useful Meseta suggestions?

Pax
Walked this summer and one of the highlights was staying in Hospital de Orbigo at ALBERGUE SAN MIGUEL, Jose and Piera are lovely as is their albergue. And then taking the alternate route out of Hospital toward Astorga was another of the highlights for me of this Camino.
 
€2,-/day will present your project to thousands of visitors each day. All interested in the Camino de Santiago.
Water bout ye mate! (For our American, English, Canadian and Australian readers this is an ancient Northern Irish greeting rather akin to the Hakka of New Zealand)
 
Hello, we are a Dutch-Spanish family which has walked the Camino several times and we are so much in love with the Camino Frances, that we wanted to become part of it, living along the Camino. That is why we opened our albergue Luz de Frómista september this year, and have met many pilgrims telling us how happy they are to walk the meseta in autumn. The colours are beautiful, walking along the Canal de Castilla to Frómista is so beautiful (you can also take the little tourist boat at about 13.00 hours, if you arrive tired at Boadilla del Camino), the weather has been very nice second half of october, and there are not too many pilgrims on the Camino. Frómista is a very nice place to stay, as it has the best conserved Romanic church of Spain (San Martin de Frómista), and also some very nice restaurants. The restaurant Los Palmeros for example is one of the 10 best restaurants of the province of Palencia (it does not offer a pilgrims menu, average price is about 30-40 euro for a menu, but worth trying). If you need any information about our region or have any other questions, we are happy to answer.
For example, what kind of markets are you looking for? There are gastronomic, artistic markets etc. And of course many religious festivities along the camino. Are you looking for any specific one?
Greetings, Gabriel and Anita
 
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
1. I remember Fromista as a charming, very quiet town, and I look forward to a lazy few hours examining its churches. And perhaps indulging in a special meal at Los Palmeros?

2. I remember staying in 2015 at the establishment across from the Church of San Pedro -- next door to where you are now, unless I'm mistaken! Next time I will stay at the Luz de Fromista!.... Update your website, please.... Find some way to get mentioned in the Brierley guide.... Y buena suerte!

3. Little tourist boat? Can you provide any more information about that?.... "Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats."
 
Walked this summer and one of the highlights was staying in Hospital de Orbigo at ALBERGUE SAN MIGUEL, Jose and Piera are lovely as is their albergue. And then taking the alternate route out of Hospital toward Astorga was another of the highlights for me of this Camino.
Big Hugs from San Miguel!!!! Buen Camino!
 
Your interest regarding the Meseta reminded me of the last thing I wrote on my blog as I left Santiago:
"How strange to ride in a car! I'm done walking miles.
I took a cab to the Santiago train station. It felt false.
The train arrived punctually at 9:39AM. I boarded coche 4, and sat in plata 252. It was backwards. As my brothers and sister will attest, I can't travel backwards. I get sick. To the consternation of the other passengers, I changed seats to face them all.
I'm smiling right now. They are not.
As the countryside passed by my window, I realized I had walked the mountains that now flew by. The green, Galician hills and valleys flashed by. I felt a deep sadness. I miss the trail so much. Yet, I'm now so tired. Sadness, relief and completion have overwhelmed me.
I know the hills outside the window intimately. I know the dirt, the stones, the flowers, the cows, the grass. I know the smell of morning, before light reveals the reality of place. I know the smell of dew-soaked hay drying in the morning sun. I know the smell of cows and pigs. And, I know the beauty of a sunrise and a full moon set in the same morning.
Oh, the joys and hardships in those hills that speed past.
Of all, the Meseta will be the most enduring. I'm glad I can't see it speed by. It is a memory best left as is; a journey into my soul; to places I didn't know existed.
While the mind fixes on a snapshot image of a gray, gravel road snaking over fields of grass, the soul recollects the visits of angels.
I had friends with me in Navarra.
I had companions with me in Galacia.
But, I had angels with me on the Meseta.
So much left behind outside the train window. So much remains inside.
Just like the doctor in Leon said, "It will take days for this to have its affect."
Indeed.
I'm just realizing...the real journey has now begun.
I have known simple, intimately.
I've experienced slow, intimately.
I've reconnected to the earth, intimately.
Where will all this intimacy take me?
Ah, as the Pilgrim saying goes, "The Camino provides.""
 
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Your interest regarding the Meseta reminded me of the last thing I wrote on my blog as I left Santiago:
"How strange to ride in a car! ...
It felt false...
I know the hills outside the window intimately. I know the dirt, the stones, the flowers, the cows, the grass. I know the smell of morning, before light reveals the reality of place. I know the smell of dew-soaked hay drying in the morning sun. I know the smell of cows and pigs. And, I know the beauty of a sunrise and a full moon set in the same morning.
Oh, the joys and hardships in those hills that speed past....
So much left behind outside the train window. So much remains inside.
Just like the doctor in Leon said, "It will take days for this to have its affect."
Indeed.
I'm just realizing...the real journey has now begun.
I have known simple, intimately.
I've experienced slow, intimately.
I've reconnected to the earth, intimately.
Where will all this intimacy take me?
Ah, as the Pilgrim saying goes, "The Camino provides.""

Not the point of your post, but this brought me to tears. The truth of it is staggering.
 
Your interest regarding the Meseta reminded me of the last thing I wrote on my blog as I left Santiago:
"How strange to ride in a car! I'm done walking miles.
I took a cab to the Santiago train station. It felt false.
The train arrived punctually at 9:39AM. I boarded coche 4, and sat in plata 252. It was backwards. As my brothers and sister will attest, I can't travel backwards. I get sick. To the consternation of the other passengers, I changed seats to face them all.
I'm smiling right now. They are not.
As the countryside passed by my window, I realized I had walked the mountains that now flew by. The green, Galician hills and valleys flashed by. I felt a deep sadness. I miss the trail so much. Yet, I'm now so tired. Sadness, relief and completion have overwhelmed me.
I know the hills outside the window intimately. I know the dirt, the stones, the flowers, the cows, the grass. I know the smell of morning, before light reveals the reality of place. I know the smell of dew-soaked hay drying in the morning sun. I know the smell of cows and pigs. And, I know the beauty of a sunrise and a full moon set in the same morning.
Oh, the joys and hardships in those hills that speed past.
Of all, the Meseta will be the most enduring. I'm glad I can't see it speed by. It is a memory best left as is; a journey into my soul; to places I didn't know existed.
While the mind fixes on a snapshot image of a gray, gravel road snaking over fields of grass, the soul recollects the visits of angels.
I had friends with me in Navarra.
I had companions with me in Galacia.
But, I had angels with me on the Meseta.
So much left behind outside the train window. So much remains inside.
Just like the doctor in Leon said, "It will take days for this to have its affect."
Indeed.
I'm just realizing...the real journey has now begun.
I have known simple, intimately.
I've experienced slow, intimately.
I've reconnected to the earth, intimately.
Where will all this intimacy take me?
Ah, as the Pilgrim saying goes, "The Camino provides.""
You found your Nirvana my friend!
 
Technical backpack for day trips with backpack cover and internal compartment for the hydration bladder. Ideal daypack for excursions where we need a medium capacity backpack. The back with Air Flow System creates large air channels that will keep our back as cool as possible.

€83,-
€2,-/day will present your project to thousands of visitors each day. All interested in the Camino de Santiago.
The Turismo of Palencia has installed a canal-boat that plies the Canal de Castilla verrrry sloooowly from Boadilla del Camino to the locks at Fromista. https://www.diputaciondepalencia.es/edificio/barco-turistico-juan-homar-fromista
I walked by yesterday. Unfortunately, the signage only indicates the days of operation, not the hours. There was a peregrina there who definitely looked as if she could use the ride, but had no idea when or if the boat would be running.20190527_182658-413x513.jpg
 

According to this website:

  • Summer April, 1 – September, 30:
    • Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Holidays: 10.30 – 14.00 and 16.30 – 20.00
    • Closed: tuesday
 
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.

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